Consul General spoke on “Business Opportunities in Pakistan” at Silk Road Virtual Conference
The Central Asian Productivity Research Center (CAPRC), based in Chicago, held its 2021 Silk Road Virtual Conference, yesterday. Mr. Tariq Karim, Consul General of Pakistan in Chicago, was invited to speak on “Business Opportunities in Pakistan”.
Speaking at the occasion, the Consul General emphasized Pakistan’s significance as an important business and investment destination. He highlighted various factors that contribute in making Pakistan an ideal place for businesses including: Pakistan’s geo-strategic location at the confluence of South, West and Central Asia that makes it a premier trade, energy and transport corridor providing the shortest route to the sea; Pakistan’s market size, its strong middle class and presence of large pool of trained professionals and workforce proficient in English; Shifting of Government’s focus from geo-politics to geo-economics with greater emphasis on peaceful neighborhood, regional connectivity and economic development as well as liberalization of investment regime in Pakistan. Referring to the emerging situation in Afghanistan, the Consul General stated that Pakistan, as a direct neighbor deeply impacted by the negative fall-out of prolonged conflict in Afghanistan, had a vital interest in a peaceful and stable Afghanistan. He emphasized the need for the international community to positivity engage the people of Afghanistan while ensuring humanitarian assistance. He also briefed the participants about Pakistan’s efforts in this regard, including its critical support to the multinational evacuation effort and provision of humanitarian assistance.
The Consul General shared success stories of Pakistan including: its effective handling of the COVID-19 pandemic through ‘smart lockdown’ policy and other programs like ‘Ehasas’ cash scheme for vulnerable sections of society, which along-with other initiatives like Ten Billion Tree Tsunami, has received international acclaim; significant upgradation of country’s infrastructure under CPEC and other projects/schemes undertaken by the Government; opening of almost all sectors for foreign investment, improvement in ‘Ease of Doing Business’ and growing interest of foreign investors in Pakistan i.e. recent announcement by Samsung to establish a phone manufacturing and assembly plant in Pakistan; Growing IT exports, with a large number of freelancers acquiring contracts for export of IT services, government’s push for digitalization of economy and rapid emergence of Pakistan’s technology ecosystem on the international stage with its thriving start-ups; and, emergence of Pakistan as one of the leading tourist destination in the world as figured out by various tourism, media organizations, and travelers, and its tremendous potential for all kinds of tourists with a wide range of travel destinations-including ancient sites like Harappa, Mohenjo-daro and Mahargarh, sites of religious significance like birth place of Mahayana Buddhism, sacred sites of Sikhism and Hinduism, historical and cultural sites, peaks for mountaineering and scenic spots for natural lovers.
The Consul General stated that Pakistan and the U.S., as important development partners, had enormous scope to further expand their business ties in different fields. He invited local investors, businessmen and professionals to benefit from business opportunities and liberal investment regime in Pakistan.
September 17, 2021